Happenstance
by silver replies
Summary: "You could have had me, you know, Sasuke-kun. And now you're the one helping me pick out a wedding dress, not the one shopping with me for the ring." It was the beginning of the end for them both. Dialogue-heavy. SasuSaku. Not all endings are happy ones.


"How bad is it?"

"Ino, he walked in on me singing and dancing to Ricky Martin…" Embarrassment.

"Oh?" Amusement.

"And then he laughed and joined in."

"Wow, so you guys _are_ serious…"

x

"You're a great guy, Lee…" Humming of contentment.

"Will you marry me, Sakura-chan?"

A minute of hesitance, then a smile.

"You make me smile like no one else, Lee."

And that was his answer.

x

"You fucking _bastards_, you don't really give a fuck about me, do you? You don't want me to be happy, you just want me all to yourselves and you don't like to share. Well, Lee makes me happy, okay? He chose me, only me… so fuck off if you think that this is my fault, because I'm tired of being the second option for both of you. Go find some other toy to play with."

x

"You could have had me, you know, Sasuke-kun. And now you're the one helping me pick out a wedding dress, not the one shopping with me for the ring."

…

"Wow, not even a grunt in response."

A barely audible whisper.

"Excuse me?"

"I said, you're not married yet."

"But I'm going to be, right?"

"Maybe. Not to him, though."

A laugh. "Not to you, either."

x

"Do you love him, Sakura-chan?"

A sigh. "Not now, Naruto…"

"If you did, you would say so. You don't love him, why are you marrying him?"

"Not everyone can have a happy ending like you and Hinata-chan, Naruto."

x

"Fuck off, Kiba, I'm not in the mood to talk to you."

"Will you just listen to me?"

A silent rejection, the clicking of high heels on the pavement.

"You're fucking insane, Sakura! I'm in love with you, I'm in love with her too… and I _never_ put you second, don't fucking give me that crap."

"She's pregnant, Kiba."

An uncomfortable silence.

"You _should_ put her first, and I've already said I'm tired of being second. Take care of Ino, take care of the baby; I don't need taking care of anymore."

And that is his (temporary, because goodbyes from Sakura are never final) goodbye.

x

"He comes here every day to buy you flowers, Forehead."

"Lee's a sweetheart like that, I guess." Silent pride.

"Sasuke and Kiba don't understand, but I'm happy for you, you know. You finally have someone who deserves you."

A smile, a peace offering. "I hope you can still fit into your bridesmaid dress for the wedding."

"God, that's not even my first concern – I just hope I can make it down the aisle without puking!"

Redemption, forgiveness.

x

"What the _hell_ are you doing here?"

"We need to talk, Sakura."

"Seven weeks before my wedding, we have to talk, huh? We needed to talk _years_ before the engagement, but you never said _anything_. You were always that boy for me, you know? And then it was Kiba, but you didn't have anything to say then, either."

"… the timing isn't important. We need to talk."

"We could have talked after our first kiss, we could have talked after you came back from university in Oto. We could have talked after I _gave my virginity to you_ and I would have given you all the time in the world with me, but you didn't fucking want it. And you know what? I have the time to give you now, but for once, I don't want to give you it – I don't want to give you _anything_."

"We're talking, now." A blatant observation.

"Yes, we are."

"So?"

"The OR is the only place I can think clearly, Sasuke-kun. You shouldn't be here; you shouldn't even be in this hospital if you don't need treatment. Leave."

…

"Please, just go."

The slamming of a door and the sound of a scalpel making contact with the floor.

"Thank you, Sasuke-kun." The goodbye that he never heard.

x

"Hinata-chan! What a surprise, I haven't seen you since the party…"

"Sakura-chan…"

"What brings you here? An ultrasound?"

"N-No, no! N-Nothing like that, I-I mean, I'm n-not…" A window to the past.

A grin, the sound of gentle teasing. "I didn't know that Naruto wasn't capable… do you need to be to prescribe something for him?"

"S-Sakura-chan!"

"It's okay, Hinata-chan, you can tell me if…"

"Stop! I'm here to talk to you about the wedding." And a return to the present.

"I'm tired of hurting, Hinata-chan… I'm tired of dwelling on the past. I'm… I'm ready to move on, now. That chapter of my life is ending, and Lee's has already started."

"So that chapter of your life isn't over yet, Sakura-chan?"

A dry chuckle. "I don't think it ever will be."

"Naruto-kun said to Sasuke-kun – to Sasuke, you were always first. You were first before Naruto-kun… and before Ino-chan, too."

"He lied." The pursing of lips, a quiet accusation. "It was always smoke and mirrors with him, but now I'm the one floating out of his reach."

"What happens now?"

"I'll see you at the wedding in a week, Hinata-chan. Please make sure your husband doesn't wear that nauseating orange suit." A conviction.

x

"Kakashi-sensei! You came!"

"Of course I came, Sakura. Who else would give you away?"

x

"Does anyone have any objections?"

Silence again, stares burning into her back.

"I object." The voice comes from the man directly beside her, not from the men behind her.

Eyes widen. "Lee…"

"You're not happy with me, Sakura-chan. You deserve someone who makes you happy, who makes your eyes brighten when he walks into the room. That someone isn't me." The sound of footsteps in the now silent church.

"Y-You make me smile like no one else, Lee." Begging, pleading. _Don't do this_.

"I'm sorry, Sakura-chan."

"Forehead? What are you doing…" "Sakura…"

"Here, you see? Inuzuka Kiba and Yamanaka Ino. They've been in love with each other since high school. Marry these two, because God knows that we've all been wanting them to since graduation."

x

"I do."

…

"I do."

A new beginning.

x

"Dobe."

"What do you want, Sasuke-teme?"

"Where's Sakura?"

x

"H-He's gone…" A strangled kind of sound, the kind you would hear from an animal before it's to be killed. "O-Oh, God... I can't… I can't breathe, I can't breathe in t-this fucking dress. Get me out of it, get me out of it!" A tantrum and the sound of ripping fabric. "I l-loved him. I would have loved him, if he had stayed, but he's gone and there's nothing I can do about it."

Silence.

"Now I'm right where I started, stuck with you. Someone up there must have some sick sort of humor, huh?"

A grunt.

"I hate you, I hate you so fucking much and I don't know why everyone thinks I'm so in love with you because I'm not, you know, I'm _over _you. I don't need you, I don't need anyone, I-I just thought, that maybe Lee… maybe Lee…"

"Stop lying to yourself, Sakura."

x

"Stop coming by here, visiting. I can't forgive you."

"I know."

"Then where does that leave us?"

"Where we've always been."

"Nowhere?" A humorless laugh, a grunt.

"God, I'm sick of you. I'm tired of being here – nowhere. I'm selling this place, it's Lee's; I'm going to find my own apartment, in Suna, maybe. And don't you dare try to follow me, Uchiha, because I'll fucking castrate you."

"That's very like you – running away."

"I could say the same for you, Sasuke-kun. Look, look. I'm leaving now. Don't hang around here too long, the landlord is going to be stopping by to check if I've cleared out nicely."

…

"Aren't you going to say anything?"

…

"Well then, I'll be going. Bye, Sasuke-kun. Take care of yourself and Naruto, too – and our godchild, while you're at it. I love you, but I always have, I guess. I think I've learned to accept it."

The sound of her apartment door closing, of luggage rolling on the hardwood floor.

This time, he got a good look at her back.


End file.
